Feds investigate shooting at Watts Bar nuclear plant

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) -- An East Tennessee nuclear power plant has added security patrols after a weekend incident in which an officer exchanged gunfire with a man who then fled on a boat.

The FBI and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission are investigating the shooting that occurred around 2 a.m. Sunday at Tennessee Valley Authority's Watts Bar nuclear power plant near Spring City, Tenn., about 60 miles southwest of Knoxville.

Jim Hopson, a TVA spokesman, said a security officer spotted a man near the bank of the Tennessee River, which is on the property of the plant but outside the plant's fences.

The man, who was wearing a dark hooded sweatshirt, shot at the officer and struck the officer's vehicle. The officer was not injured and returned fire.

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